SCO Summit Dushanbe: Rajnath Singh calls out double standards on terrorism in front of Pakistan’s Ishaq Dar

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday (Oct 20) that terrorism can never be justified and that there can be no double standards in tackling it. He was speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of Government meeting in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.

Singh described terrorism as "one of the gravest threats to development," saying it harms not only lives but also investment and commerce. He said terrorism radicalises societies and deprives young people of the opportunities they deserve. His remarks were made in the presence of Pakistan's foreign minister and deputy prime minister Ishaq Dar, who was seated across from him. Pakistan's foreign ministry also shared a video of the meeting showing Singh and Dar at the same table.

"There can be no justification for terrorism. There can be no double standards in tackling it. There can be no space for people who finance and support terrorists or provide them a safe haven. The entire ecosystem of terrorism should be ended strongly and collectively," Singh said.

Singh is representing India at the meeting, where leaders and representatives of member countries have gathered for discussions under the regional grouping. He is on a two-day official visit to Tajikistan. He received a ceremonial welcome on arrival at Dushanbe airport, where he was greeted by Tajikistan's Defence Minister Emomali Sobirzoda and Sherali Jonon of the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Earlier in September, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also urged SCO members to work together to dismantle the "ecosystem of terrorism." Speaking at an SCO meeting attended by Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russia's Vladimir Putin and Iran's Masoud Pezeshkian, among others, Modi said member states must dismantle the entire ecosystem of terrorist financing, recruitment, radicalisation and safe havens.

India accuses Pakistan's government and army of supporting and harbouring terrorism. A fortnight after the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed 26 innocent lives, India launched Operation Sindoor, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The operation and the military conflict that followed resulted in heavy military losses for Pakistan. Days after the cessation of hostilities was announced, Modi said that while India believes in tourism, Pakistan considers terrorism as tourism, which he called very dangerous for the world. India maintains that it does not distinguish between terrorism and those who harbour it.